War Games, Comic Relief, and Diversionary Tactics

I am so glad that Cleopatra was on hand during that Superbowl brawl last Sunday along with her Roman escorts to provide the ogling body-politic with some spectacular Circus Maximus-type highlights in that post-modern Coliseum. I mean Lucas Oil Stadium in Indy was all greased up and ready for action. And you could easily tell it was Cleo up there because of the imitation “walk like an Egyptian” moves she gave us up front. It made me recall her (Cleo’s) erstwhile love affair with Mark Anthony from the imperial days of Rome gone by. But, of course, M.I.A., the baby act, got all the press with that fickle middle finger of hers. Just can’t trust those up-and-coming starlets. Never know what the fuck they’ll do.

Interesting as well that the mythical Giants beat the nationalistic Patriots… perhaps as a proleptic anticipation of what lays in wait for Empire. And, of course, there were heroes galore and cameras to catch all the action. However, after watching the brawl in the bowl, and the last minute antics whereby the giants (living as they do, closer to Wall Street) overcame the fav’d sons of Empire, King Obama suddenly announced that perhaps it is not such a good idea to attack Iran, suggesting that the patriotic among us might prefer to find a diplomatic “fix” after all.

And then, it’s always nice to see a hometown hero like Robert Downey Jr., having emerged from jail, to then emerge from his repeated capers as Sherlock Holmes, helping to save the civilized world from a robotically armed apocalypse. The SB trailer for the Avengers was just icing on the cake for the spectators of the spectacle.

But, as Al Jazeera noted, the US Superbowl is far more than a game. Their journalist clearly writes: “The Superbowl isn’t just about a sport, it’s about entertainment. Americans love a spectacle; they want to be taken for a ride.” Boy, does he have us pegged. Ya think? And, even the local cathedral got into the act, with fans stopping in to offer the god a brief prayer for victory. The Bowl has even been dubbed by some as a “rare communal moment for Americans.” Well, I guess that sums up our capacity for community now doesn’t it. Much like the community of brothers in a United States Marine Corps unit.

In all seriousness fellow travelers, the rite of passage that the Superbowl represents is nothing short of civilized ecstasy: with a hot new Silverado truck on display after the teleological moment arrives, hot super heroes to save us from the technological cataclysm just around the corner, lots of great commercials specifically designed with a consuming demographic in view, great eats – chips, salsa, ribs on the table, and lots of cold Coors light beer on ice, the one that doesn’t even taste like beer. I mean, you might as well do the circumcisions right there folks, because it doesn’t get any better than this. And talk about heroic feats in the quest for the golden Vince Lombardi trophy. It’s just about as magical as pulling King Arthur’s sword from the stone, without the magician on hand.

Meanwhile, we had several other shows going on at the same time, folks. Some sports related, some not. Well, I guess that depends upon how you define ‘sport’. I know that the Empire considers gameboy-interactive-drone-death-dealing-virtual-military-action in Pakistan pretty much like a game or sport. At lest the smartly-dressed nerds controlling the screens from inside their bunkers consider it a game; its like the Big game.

And, then there are the countrywide gladiator fights going on city to city in Syria. Boy, that’s turning into one ugly game. Maybe time to send in those tough US Navy Seals; you know, the same ones who assassinated Osama bin Laden, the same ones that made sure the Colonel (Gaddafi) was lit up like a Christmas tree for the rebels to get a clear shot at. I hear that the big O-man is at least considering some kind of military assistance to the Syrian underdogs. So you might want to take the rebels with the points on that game. But no one knows for sure who is going to win the international game of musical chairs down there, the Saudis, the USA or Russia, for ongoing influence. And why does Syria matter: because of its neighborhood. It borders both Israel and Iraq. So that’s a pretty big bowl game as well; we’ll just have to keep the snacks warm until we see the next few plays unfold.

And of course Libya is still good for a few well-placed bets. You realize, of course, that the USA and NATO allies are poised to send in ground troops now to protect the oil platforms in Brega, the port that controls the flow of Libyan oil exports. King Obama has deployed 12,000 US troops to Malta in apparent readiness to have boots on the ground there shortly. And apparently, there has already been some NATO action there, killing the very rebels they previously assisted, in an effort to secure the oil fields there.* I am sure no one has heard of this troop movement; it is how the hegemony operates: in secrecy. This is your tax dollars at work folks: and your democracy making decisions for you while keeping you entertained.

But, hey, what about those Egyptians… they must be taking their lead from the mother Madonna-Cleopatra at the Big Bowl game. Wow, what a week’s worth of soccer action there, huh folks. They just can’t get enough of that shit. Ya just gotta love those games where the word competition takes on a whole new meaning; where it is raised to the next level, so to speak. And nothing like a little military action (in the streets) to really shake up the spectators, wake them out of their brief stupor and allow the big guns to roll on over them again. Wonder when our World championship game will look as exciting as that shit storm in Egypt. Well, everything in perspective folks.

Now, we have the really big show in Iran developing. We are in pre-game warm-ups right now; you can tell by all the trash-talkin’ going on. But, just wait until those cool fighter jets take to the air, the drones are let loose, and the missiles start flying off ships. Man is that looking to be a great match-up, the high priest of Islam, the great Ayatollah, against the pseudo-Muslim, American hegemon. I don’t think we’ve seen anything quite that exciting folks, not since the Christians were fed to the lions at the Coliseum in old Rome. And Iran has made it crystal clear that they can and will throw the long ball if necessary to hit US targets around the world. Wow. Sure sounds like some solid Vegas action to me.

Meanwhile the US has just struck up an arms deal with Bahrain worth $53,000,000. The arms manufacturers must love that deal. So POTUS is pretty much making a huge bet on the regime cracking open and then cracking down on those democracy-seeking demonstrators there. The game should play-out fairly expeditiously after the arms deal comes down.

Seriously, folks, we are a country of wars, games and diversionary tactics. We keep the sleepy public drugged on superbowls, and smaller bowls of diverse narcotizing agents, and then let the big boys make decisions, and spend our tax dollars. Face it folks, we have a very big habit, and the big boys around here have an even bigger habit to maintain. And the entire world is paying the price of our continued addiction and entertainment.

I’m just waiting for our 2012 version of the Gulf of Tonkin, this time of course in the Strait of Hormuz. Or maybe it will be Hillary Clinton at the UN with cute little drawings of Iran’s (alleged) nuclear missles, a la Colin Powell. One question, though. Can we, the American public, really be suckered again? Probably.

Indeed Sandy, indoctrinated and domesticated (regardless of Shepard’s definition) from birth, probably from initial insemination, no, way, way before! Though i so desire/require to remain apolitical, it seems the heirarchy ‘need’ me for some undisclosed political reasons, which are infinitely more than i could ever need fom them. The question i mindpose to the majority of my fellow humans is: “Have you ever considered skipping all the insignificant, inconsequential small stuff, and, if you did, what if anything would remain?” Obviously i’ve had it with the fabricated world imposed by? Them? Hmm…or, every one of us who continues shilling for civilization’s charades, even while feigning we’re actually not, be we of the large-scale or small-scale variety?

Certainly, we can drop much of the small stuff; but, finding a way to live without shilling?… they have made it very difficult for most people to do that. As you point out, the roots of our misfortune go very deep.

Look to the stars. One cannot visit them without going through feral-space. And, once you arrive. More feral-space to the next one… The key, one would think, is not ridding the world of darkness, but rather keeping ones own light intact.

“Herd mentality implies a fear-based reaction to peer pressure which makes individuals act in order to avoid feeling “left behind” from the group. Herd mentality is also sometimes known as ‘mob mentality.’” Source: Wikipedia

Those who would be our shepards excel in their craft or employ those who do. The masses are manipulated without allowing themselves to know it consciously, ignorance of ignorance. Our schools, even at the higher levels have moved toward indoctination, teaching one what to think, and away from education, teaching one how to think.

I went looking in my archives for a favorite quote about conventional “wisdom,” but I found this, which is its flip side:

from a novel by T.H. White, The Once and Future King”
quoted a book titled, The Heart of Learning
Merlin speaking:
The best thing for being sad is to learn something. That is the only thing that never fails. You may lie awake listening to the disorder of your veins. You may miss your only love. You may see the world around you devestated by evil lunatics or know your honor trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it: to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the thing for you.

Personally, I never was happy being a student in school, nor was I much of a reader. It was only after I graduated college that I learned to love learning and learn loving.

KC, et al: This U-tube vid was sent to me (i would have never pulled this particular site up myself). However, on so many levels speaks to the impassioned connectivities of all life. Apparently, from what i’ve heard, no one is able to watch this without tears that truly matter flowing. Here’s the info:
godvine.com/Elephants-Reunite-After-20-Years-Apart-1039. Or am i completely deluded? Definitely a far different take than stupidbows and cheeze dips.

Well, I gotta say, I’ve been on the planet 3/4 of a century (this time) and I have never, ever watched a sooperbowl game – nor do I ever intend to. I just can’t take anything like that seriously. It’s not that I don’t like phootball, I do; high-school level, where it’s still more-or-less a real game rather than spectacle.

As for the rest, well, yeah, to those who sit in the higher places it is all just a game, I’m sure. Too bad for us that the rest of us are not only the pawns but get the privilege of paying for it as well – like it or not.

“A community like brothers in a Marine Corps Unit.” Now that’s good. As Chesty Puller is quoted as saying, “War is a racket.” Those that participate must then be racketeers. That is really good. Just so no one gets their panties twisted I once was one of those Marines. I know what bull shit they use to make you a believer. Good one Sandy.

To hell with the sp..I’ll give you sum more.Served the USAF intelligence..most of it declassed by now but never know..lived with the Nunamuit Eskimos for awile..good people..caught between a rock and you know.When a person comes back to this..well,can’t fit in.Don’t want to..can’t explain it anyone.Most of this diatribe is just that…see things now others can’t.It’s a burden that only those who have lived close to the land can understand.I’m tired.

You are great.
I love reading your posts.
And you are right.
If you think that a website like Facebook is valued 98B, explains how much America loves entertainment and sometimes it even looks like the entire economy prizes what we call “time killers”, things that produce nothing, but entertain a lot…

True enough. In the convention sense, the way most “businessmen” see production, music is a meaningless abstraction. Never mind that practically the whole of humanity is wrapped up in it somehow, as music-makers, audiences, or resellers. It’s not nearly so prestigious as developing and selling, for instance, the iPhone. Now that’s real productivity.